The presented study intends to map and analyse ongoing processes in the regions of the Czech Republic while emphasizing the position of rural areas. It aims to reveal their trends, as well as their differentiation with respect to the categories of regions and their geographical location.
It addresses the issues like ageing, population change, dependency burden, and more importantly the situation on the labour markets by characterizing development of unemployment rates as well as the marginalization of chose n social groups of unemployed under the influence of the last economic crisis. The results support the intention of develop ing more regionally suiting strategies to mitigate and reverse the identified changes.
Moreover, the position of rural areas is not straightforward, as the ongoing trends are much more dependent on the other factors and the rurality is only additional to them. The hot spots of a negative development were found on national borders as well as in the old industrial districts.
The paper co ncludes with suggestions for the creation of development strategies that would be able to face the most emerging issue arisen from the cumulative trend of increased youth unemployment and out - migration that enhance further depopulation and the loss of huma n and social capital.